


A Good Deal

by Raaj



Series: A Good Deal [1]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Bad Ending, Gen, but with a different take from canon?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-20
Updated: 2018-08-20
Packaged: 2019-06-30 03:01:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15742833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raaj/pseuds/Raaj
Summary: The people have made their wishes clear. If they want a prison so badly, they can stay locked up. There's no reason for everyone to keep risking their lives when their efforts up to this point were already discarded like trash.You make a deal, and the world changes.





	A Good Deal

"It's a good deal," you tell Yaldabaoth, because it's a deal that lets you walk away with your friends. He said that the Phantom Thieves would be famous. The _Thieves_.

 

The offer of fame seems like a poisoned cup. The past couple months have shown clearly enough how fickle popular opinion can be, and you wouldn't find any worth in it at all, except-- the reason you're here right now, alone in the Velvet Room, is because the Thieves have disappeared from the public cognition entirely. It makes you wonder if Yaldabaoth is offering fame because he thinks you still desire it--

 

\--Or if fame goes hand-in-hand with the right to exist for him. A condition? He hasn't said what your part of the deal is, and you really doubt he's giving you this simply because you turned out to be "extraordinary" in his screwed-up game. It really doesn't matter. The people made their wishes clear. If they want a prison so badly, they can stay locked up. There's no reason for everyone to keep risking their lives when their efforts up to this point were already discarded like trash.

 

Lavenza, the sum of Caroline and Justine, stares at you with the betrayed anger of one and the quiet disappointment of the other. You stare back at her and refuse to show any ounce of remorse. It's the people of Tokyo who deserve her judgment. And if her real master had decided to place the responsibility of reforming them on a group of teenagers, he's just as unreasonable as the imposter.

 

You're taking your friends and going back home.

 

* * *

 

You emerge from the Velvet Room in the alley by Untouchables.

 

You're alone.

 

You immediately whirl back to the metal door; you'll break that liar's long nose if it's the last thing you do, and you're sure it will be, but the door refuses to open for you, no matter how much you rattle it. There's no warden to guide you through.

 

...Your phone is buzzing. You have no idea who would message you on Christmas Eve besides your friends, and that cuts through the surge of fear and anger just enough for you to check.

 

If it's Mishima about the Phansite, you may have an actual meltdown.

 

There is no description for how relieved you are to see the Phantom Thieves group chat is active, new messages coming in every minute. You take a breath and step away from the blue-lit door, though your forehead wrinkles as you keep reading. None of the messages make sense. "How are you late? YOU LIVE HERE," Futaba scolds. Others agree it's unusual for you to be late (for what?). Makoto worries about if you got caught up in something. Ryuji guesses you might be grabbing something extra for the party ( _what party?_ ).

 

At least you know they're alive. And feeling good enough to celebrate it? You punch out a brief response ("Bringing myself, be there soon" with a quick rejoinder of "that works, you're always extra" from Ann), already striding toward the station. You look everywhere, trying to spot something out of place, but the world seems normal. No huge, monstrous skeletons. No bloody rain. Instead, light snowflakes melt on your skin when you turn your face to the sky.

 

The surrealness of the situation still hasn't settled in after the train ride to Yongen-jaya station. People are talking about the Phantom Thieves again. A couple gets into a spirited discussion of how the case against Shido will go, like they have no reason to doubt he'd be prosecuted, and more importantly, as if they care.

 

An hour ago, the world looked hellish. Now there's clean white snow on the roofs and cheerful chatter, setting a delicate Christmas card scene as you head into the backstreets. Leblanc. Everything will make sense at Leblanc.

 

The ambush happens as soon as you open the door, Ann and Futaba both grabbing and hugging you while Ryuji reaches over Futaba to put you in a headlock. The three of them are loud enough to nearly drown out Haru's polite but warm greeting, and Yusuke and Makoto simply look amused by the bar counter, waiting for the clamor to die down before they try talking. Sae stands behind Makoto with a kind smile. Sojiro is busy cooking, presumably for the party, but he spares you a grin from the kitchen, and you can't help your own small smile when you see how the grin reaches up to his eyes, crow's feet crinkling with what seems like pride.

 

Except--your stomach swoops down--you haven't done anything for him to be proud of. Not today.

 

You last about twenty minutes, keeping that smile pasted on as the others carry out a conversation that they clearly expect you to follow. Why wouldn't you know that the public is finally calling for Shido and his associates to be brought to justice? It's been all over the news. Sae announces ruefully that she'll have to leave early to start work on the case, but she's congratulating you and the others on making this possible, not warning you of impending arrests. When you manage to force out a concern about potential repercussions from the other conspirators, she looks at you with wide eyes before shaking her head. That would only draw attention to them, and there's enough scrutiny from the media already. They wouldn't dare. Makoto mentions it'd still be best to go after them soon, and everyone agrees, but Sojiro insists that teenagers should be teenagers for at least tonight, and that gets a more enthusiastic chorus, Ryuji's "hell yeah, let's party!" being the loudest.

 

You excuse yourself to the bathroom, slipping away to the attic instead. The television downstairs had been turned off. You need to see the news.

 

"Welcome back."

 

Morgana's greeting is startling, faint as it is. His blue eyes, usually wide and bright, are heavy-lidded and dull as he gazes at you from the bed. He's resting on his stomach, his chin touching his front paws. He seems more real than the party going on downstairs, but not in a good way.

 

"Are you all right?"

 

"...Yeah," the feline says in the tone that means he's not at all. Morgana has always been a little more transparent than he'd like, but you're not sure he's even trying right now. He curls up on his side, tucking his head beneath one paw. "Just tired."

 

Well, that seems honest enough. Not reassuring, though, and after turning on the old crt television, you move to sit down on your makeshift bed by him, petting his back gently as reporters discuss the upcoming trial and then segue into a replay of the most recent calling card from the Phantom Thieves, with enthusiastic commentary about the daring nature of it.

 

It's...really true. Shido's change of heart has finally had the desired effect, and the Phantom Thieves seem to be as popular as ever. Yaldabaoth made good on his promise, and then some, because no one seems to remember the reality of how this Christmas Eve started. Not even the other Phantom Thieves.

 

You're grateful. They don't need to remember the horrifying way that everyone phased out of being. They don't need to remember the aching weakness, the screaming and panicking, Futaba pleading "No!" and Haru being too incoherent for words when they each disappeared, the people milling around the nightmarish scene without a care--

 

Morgana tenses beneath your hand. It's started to close into a fist, and you take it away with a murmured apology. The 24th on which the Phantom Thieves were erased is no more. No longer real. Let it go. Be grateful, because you were allowed to take them back.

 

Easier said than done when this reality seems so fake. The tv personality bashfully showing off her Phantom Thief phone charm bashed them before. Perhaps she's one of the prisoners of Mementos, passively following whatever society dictates.

 

"Yo!" Ryuji's head pops up from the staircase. "What are you, an old man? You ditched us to watch the news? Shido's gonna get what he deserves! Let's go downstairs and celebrate!"

 

"Come on!" Ann's voice floats up in agreement.

 

"Morgana isn't feeling well," you tell them. It doesn't seem to surprise Ryuji, though he does frown.

 

"Yeah, Morgana's been saying he's tired, but that we should go on anyway. We can pick up some convenience store sushi for him later. That sound good, Morgana?"

 

"Sure," Morgana says, like Ryuji offered dry cat food and not sushi, even if it is from the store. He's definitely out of sorts. You reach over to pull the blanket over him, in case he needs the extra warmth, but the look he gives you stills your hand. "You should go. Don't worry about me. This is what you wanted, after all."

 

It's the tiniest bit resentful (or hurt?), and Morgana can be a master of passive-aggressiveness when upset, and your first thought is _he knows about the deal._

 

Your second thought is that if Morgana knew and was angry about it, he would have already told everyone. Obviously, he hasn't.

 

Third comes belatedly, as you rise from the bed to follow Ryuji back downstairs: the realization that there is no way Morgana could know. He disappeared before you. You're the only one who appeared in the Velvet Room. You're the only one who's even able to see its door. How could Morgana know about a deal struck inside the room? Unless you told him, of course.

 

...You wonder if you should tell him. Tell everyone. The group is supposed to make decisions unanimously, after all. Not that you plan on apologizing for making an executive decision when you were literally the only thief left standing, but everyone is back. They--should know the truth, shouldn't they? The true nature of Mementos. The danger lurking in the depths. A treasure that became a god of control.

 

It sounds crazy before even touching on the matter of the deal. The reason you made it. _We went up in smoke because people don't really give a shit about us. Literal smoke. They didn't care enough to remember. I made the deal to save us from the people we've been trying to save._

 

You know how quickly Ryuji's smile would disappear. Party ruined. But they'd understand why you made the choice.

 

_It's a prison of their own making. They're actually happy there._  Baffling, but true. Impossible to argue with.

 

Except-- _I believed myself happy with Madarame. I was still in need of rescuing, and you did not turn away._

 

Yusuke gives a curious tilt of the head when your eyes snap to him. You know he hasn't said anything yet, but your stomach still sinks as you consider the conversation ahead. Yusuke would think of his experience with Madarame. Yusuke might argue to go back to the depths, even though the situations aren't the same. And once he made the comparison, what would the others say...?

 

The artist reaches for your wrist with his long, graceful fingers. "Are you all right?" he asks with concern. "You were gone for the bathroom for quite some time, and you look pale."

 

"He wasn't in the bathroom, he was watching the news," Ann interjects, jumping up on the nearest barstool. "Ryuji's right, that's totally something an old man would do." But she takes another look at you, and her voice softens in concern as she leans forward. "Hey, what's wrong?"

 

What's wrong is that when you explain, she'll agree with Yusuke. _Wow, people are pretty screwed up. So let's show them how to be stronger. That's why we became Phantom Thieves, right? To give strength to the weak by showing our justice._

 

You didn't know before how weak people truly are. You didn't know before how easily your efforts could be forgotten. And she won't understand either of those things until she's being erased from existence all over again.

 

No. No. "Low blood sugar," you mutter with a sheepish laugh, fiddling with your hair. "I haven't eaten in a while."

 

It's a believable excuse, especially since the last time you ate really was a while ago, before entering Mementos; Yusuke makes a noise of all-too-knowing sympathy, while Ann rolls her eyes. "You two are unbelievable. Sit down, at least! I think Boss is almost done with the curry. Maybe a few more minutes?"

 

You're glad they buy the excuse. This one decision has to stay your own. It's already been made, and you know it was right. You can't risk them wanting to overturn it and go back down into the depths. You won't get a deal like this a second time.

 

You're not going to tell them, but you still find yourself going over the argument, just in case.   _I made the deal so we could all go home safe. We shouldn't have to sacrifice our lives because_ _the adults let society become so rotten. They don't deserve it. They don't deserve you._

 

Yeah. You know you're right; you don't need a vote to prove it. Let the party keep going. Everyone's gotten what they wanted, just in time for Christmas. You have your friends. They have the chance to live and keep saving people as the Phantom Thieves. And the people of Tokyo have their prison.

 

It's the best kind of deal. Everyone wins.

**Author's Note:**

> I found the Yaldabaoth fascinating in that it's kind of out of left-field, it's so blatantly a bad idea that anyone who's seen a jrpg before would know "this is not what you should do" (especially when it asks you to confirm, DO YOU WANT TO LEAVE PEOPLE IN PRISON?), and yet the normal ending does such a good job about leaving me ambivalent about humanity that taking the bad ending becomes genuinely tempting. Especially considering what just came before.
> 
> While the game seems to present Joker taking the deal as him caving to the desire for fame / power / his version of justice, considering the dungeon before is all about freedom vs. security and that he just saw everyone get erased, I like to look at it more as him giving up on trying to give the people a freedom they don't seem to want in favor of protecting his friends. Still a decision that will come back to haunt him eventually. (I tried to write this so it could read as complete as a one-shot, but I do have ideas for further down the timeline and may add onto this in time.)


End file.
